Bottle crate



Aug. 18, 1942. D. J. McCLARY 2,293,516

BOTTLE .CRATE Filed Jan. 6, 1941 9 J Ji Patented Aug. 18, 1942 UNlTEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE BOTTLE CRATE Application January 6, 1941, SerialNo. 373,333

1 Claim.

This invention relates to crates designed for the storage andtransportation of bottles, and particularly of bottles of the smallersizes, such as pint bottles and cream bottles.

The use of twisted flat stock or ribbon separators in such crates isdesirable to save space, but such separators have very little lateralstiffness and permit the bottles to shift about, particularly when thecrate is not entirely filled.

It is the general object of my invention to provide an improvedconstruction in bottle crates by which such flat stock or ribbonseparators will be held firmly from lateral displacement.

To the attainment of this general object, I preferably provide spacingbars of flat sheet metal bent to U-shaped cross section and so fashionedas to receive and firmly hold a plurality of such separators fromdisplacement, either laterally or vertically.

My invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of partswhich will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out inthe appended claim.

A preferred form of the invention is shown in the drawing, in which Fig.1 is a plan view of a bottle crate embodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is a partial sectional side elevation, taken along the line 2--2in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a partial sectional end elevation, taken along the line 33 inFig. 1;

Fig. 1 is an enlarged partial sectional end elevation, looking in thedirection of the arrow A in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 5 is a partial plan view, looking in the direction of the arrow 5in Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a partial sectional elevation, taken along the line 6-6 inFig. 4.

Referring to the drawing, I have shown a bottle crate which is ingeneral of a somewhat usual type and which comprises side walls it andends ll, firmly secured together by longitudinally extending bottom rodsl2 and by upper and lower cross rods l3 and M.

Upper and lower separators l5 and it are preferably formed of flat metalstrips or ribbons and have their ends secured by nails or otherfastening devices in slots 13 in the ends I l.

The separators l5 and I6 are twisted into successive vertical andhorizontal portions, as clearly shown in Fig. l, with the verticalportions It separating the bottles and with the horizontal portions 16engaging the cross rods 13 and I4 and preferably passing over one crossrod and under the next adjacent cross rod, alternately.

Obviously the fiat strips or ribbons l5 and IS have very little lateralstiffness. As they are secured only at their extreme ends, they readilyyield laterally and allow the bottles to be displaced, particularly whenthe crate is only part ly filled.

In order to reduce or prevent this shifting action, I provide a specialspacing member 20, shown in detail in Figs. 4, 5 and 6. This spacingmember 253 is preferably formed from a strip of flat sheet metal, bentto U-shaped cross section as shown in Figs. 2 and 6, and adapted to fitbetween the sides H] of a crate and over one of the upper cross rods l3.

Each spacing member 20 is provided with a plurality of recesses 22,spaced apart to receive the upper separators I6. These separatorspreferably extend under the tie rod I3 on which the spacing member 20 isapplied, so that the assembled parts are held firmly in the fixedrelation shown in Figs. 4 to 6.

In assembling the parts, the separators are first inserted and secured,after which a spacing member 20 is placed in position and a cross rod I3is then inserted and secured.

In crates of usual size, such as the small twenty shown in Fig. 1, asingle spacing member 26 is commonly suificient, but obviously two ormore spacing members may be used where found desirable, or in crates oflarger capacity.

My improved construction, While exceedingly simple, is fully effectivefor its intended purposes and obviates defects heretofore present inthis type of crate which have very seriously interfered with theircommercial adoption.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do notwish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than asset forth in the claim, but what I claim is:

In a bottle crate having sides, ends, bottom supports and cross rods, incombination, a plurality of substantially parallel bottle separatorssecured at their ends in said crate and positioned substantially in asingle horizontal plane, all of said separators being positionedadjacent and on the same side of one of said cross rods, and a spacingmember in the form of an elongated sheet metal trough substantiallyU-shaped in cross section, said spacing member enclosing and extendinglaterally beyond said cross rod at each side thereof and havinglongitudinally separated notches in its rounded and closed edge portion,which notches extend transversely of said trough and beyond said crossrod and separately receive and position said separators between saidcross rod and the closed ends of said notches, and said spacing memberbeing thereby efiective to lock said separators to said cross rod in adefinite spaced relation and to prevent both vertical and horizontaldisplacement of said separators.

' DAVID J. MCCLARY.

